New Delhi: Influencer and podcaster Ranveer Allahbadia’s controversial “sex with parents” question to a contestant on the YouTube show India’s Got Latent sparked a social media uproar. Although the influencer apologised, the backlash continues, and an FIR has been filed against him by Assam Police.
Here’s a look at comedians and influencers who faced backlash and police action for their remarks.
Aseem Trivedi
Indian comedians have encountered FIRs and government backlash over the past 7-8 years. However, the arrest of Indian cartoonist Aseem Trivedi in September 2012 was one of the earliest cases that sparked the debate on freedom of speech.
Trivedi’s cartoons, published during anti-corruption protests, attacked perceived corruption in India’s political system, with one of them depicting the four lions in India’s national emblem as wolves and another showing the Parliament as a toilet bowl.
He was charged with sedition under IPC Section 124A, while Section 66A of the IT Act and the National Emblem Act 1971 were also invoked against him.
Trivedi walked out of Arthur Road Jail on 11 March 2018 after the Bombay High Court granted him bail.
Munawar Faruqui
Faruqui was arrested from Indore in 2021 for allegedly insulting Hindu deities in jokes that he had allegedly prepared, although they did not appear in his set that night.
He was booked under sections 188, 269, 34, and 295A of the IPC. No concrete evidence was found, but he spent over a month in jail.
The comic was denied bail by the Madhya Pradesh High Court, sparking criticism from fellow comedians and free speech advocates who said his arrest was a misuse of the law.
He was finally granted bail by the Supreme Court after spending 35 days behind bars.
Also read: Ranveer Allahbadia row reaches Lok Sabha. Thousands unfollow him on Instagram, YouTube
Kunal Kamra
Kamra’s political commentary brought him into the spotlight—and at times, sparked controversy.
In 2020, the comedian faced contempt charges for his tweets criticising the Supreme Court’s decision to grant bail to TV anchor Arnab Goswami in a 2018 suicide case of an architect.
Kamra was booked under the Contempt of Courts Act, 1972. The case is still pending in the court.
Vir Das
Comedian Vir Das was called a “terrorist” for his stand-up titled ‘I come from two Indias’ at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC in November 2021. The poem described the contradictions of the country. For example, one line read: “I come from an India where we worship women during the day and gangrape them at night.”
His piece was met with outrage. Several police complaints were filed against him, including one from Aditya Jha, a BJP spokesperson, who accused the comic for “insulting the country”.
The Mumbai BJP secretary, Vivekanand Gupta, also contacted Delhi Police to request that a case be filed against Das for “hurting the feelings of nationalists”. The Madhya Pradesh government had banned Das from performing in the state.
Bollywood actor and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut called Das’ act “soft terrorism”, demanding “strict action against such criminals”.
Kiku Sharda
Actor and comic Kiku Sharda of ‘Comedy Nights with Kapil’ fame had to spend 14 days in judicial custody in 2016 for mimicking Dera Chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh.
Sharda was booked under section 295 A of the IPC, for “outraging religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious belief”.
Also read: Ranveer Allahbadia apologises to 6 lakh followers on X—not on YouTube with 83 lakh followers
Tanmay Bhat and AIB
In the same year, comedian Tanmay Bhat, co-founder of the now-defunct comedy group All India Bakchod (AIB), got into trouble after posting a Snapchat video that impersonated cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar and iconic singer Lata Mangeshkar.
This led to an FIR against him by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS).
AIB, known for its online comedy sketches, also faced backlash over a “roast” event that featured Bollywood stars like Arjun Kapoor and Ranveer Singh.
In 2017, the group ran into more issues when they were hit with a defamation case for allegedly sharing an “obscene” photo of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Twitter.
The tweet showed a look-alike of the Prime Minister using Snapchat’s dog filter at a railway station, next to a real photo of Modi.
Agrima Joshua
In 2020, stand-up comic artiste Agrima Joshua received rape threats and was abused online after an old video of her 2019 performance surfaced in which she allegedly insulted Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
The comedian had to later apologise for her comments.
Many of these comedians/influencers, including Varun Grover and Rohan Joshi, have faced online harassment, cancellation of shows, and police cases—all for the crime of cracking a joke.
Nipun Saxena, practicing advocate at the Supreme Court, said that while Allahbadia’s comment might seem inappropriate, it may not necessarily meet the criteria to be considered an offense under Section 296 of the BNS.
“The content was intended for a closed, subscription-based space, not meant for public circulation. Those who made parts of the video public could also be held accountable for obscenity. That said, any restrictions that are enforced must be done strictly and narrowly,” Saxena argued.
The advocate added that authorities must also determine whether the content was scripted. “If it was, and the intention was to generate TRP, then artistic expression comes into play.”
(Edited by Aamaan Alam Khan)